$1.1 billion in cartel assets frozen in Mexico in another blow against CJNG cartel
In yet an other assault on Mexico's rampant illegal drug
trade, Mexican officials and U.S. drug agents teamed to target nearly 2,000
men, women and companies to freeze more than $1.1 billion in assets of a deadly
drug cartel.
During his daily briefing Wednesday, Mexico's President
Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador told reporters that "Operation Blue
Agave" targeted Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación. CJNG, based in
Guadalajara, and the Sinaloa Cartel are now blamed for importing the bulk of
fentanyl — the deadliest drug in America — into the U.S.
The Mexican president said the cartel crackdown was led by
an anti-money laundering unit of Mexico's Ministry of Finance with the help of
the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
"There was a request from the government of the United
States because they had information about this group," the Mexican
president said. "Following the collaboration agreements, the accounts of
this group had to be frozen.
"There will no longer be protection for any organized
crime group; I will continue facing organized crime to maintain peace in the
country."
It's another in a series of blows to CJNG, now the world's
most dangerous and successful drug empire.
The top target is its elusive boss, Rubén Oseguera
Cervantes, know as "El Mencho," who has eluded police for years even
with a $10 million U.S. bounty.
Why Americans should know of El Mencho: Who is El Mencho?
He's the most powerful drug kingpin you've never heard of
While he remains in hiding, protected by heavily-armed
mercenaries, investigators are going after those closest to him — and his war
chest.
Santiago Nieto Castillo, chief of the Mexican Finance
Ministry's Financial Intelligence Unit, said in a statement that his unit froze
bank accounts belonging to 1,770 people and 67 companies, and two escrow
accounts linked to the cartel.
"The FIU worked with the DEA in determining the
operation's objectives," Nieto said.
"It was possible to locate a large number of members of
the CJNG criminal group, as well as its largest financial operators and companies
used in money laundering."
In February, El Mencho's son, Rubén Oseguera González, was
extradited from Mexico to the U.S. to face drug trafficking charges in a
federal courtroom in Washington, D.C. He is known as "El Menchito,"
or "Lil' Mencho," and was No. 2 in charge of CJNG, which commands an
army of 5,000 followers.
He maintains his innocence and is awaiting trial.
His sister, Jessica Johanna Oseguera González, came from her
home in Mexico to Washington, D.C., to see her brother in court, but was
arrested upon entering the courthouse on her own charges.
Known as "La Negra," she and her brother were born
in America and, therefore, are subject to U.S. laws. Officials charged her with
associating with businesses blacklisted by the U.S. Treasury Department due to
their connection to CJNG or its affiliate the Los Cuinis cartel.
DEA agents teamed with police across the country for a March
arrest blitz of more than 700 CJNG associates. The arrests were a culmination
of a six-month investigation, dubbed "Project Python," intended to
strangle the cartel.
During a coordinate attack in several U.S. cities on a
single day, on March 11, federal agents and police served more than 100 search
warrants on 250 targets and confiscated 600 kilograms of drugs, Uttam Dhillon,
acting administrator of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, told
reporters.
"Project Python is the single-largest strike by U.S.
authorities against CJNG to date, but it's only the beginning," he said.
In May, Gerardo González Valencia, one of El Mencho's
brothers-in-law, was extradited from Uruguay to the U.S. on charges of
conspiracy to import at least five kilograms of cocaine and 500 grams of
methamphetamine to the U.S., according to the indictment.
The U.S. Treasury Department designated both El Mencho and
Gerardo's older brother, Los Cuinis' leader, Abigael González Valencia, as
"kingpins," allowing U.S. officials to go after their assets and
making it illegal for American banks and citizens to associate with their
businesses. The U.S. has blacklisted dozens of companies, including a tequila
label, a resort, two Mexican newspapers and sushi restaurants.
Mexican officials arrested Abigael, known as
"Boss," in 2015, and he has fought extradition to the U.S. Another
brother, Jose, was arrested in Brazil in 2017.
In November, The Courier Journal profiled El Mencho and CJNG
in a special report that highlighted how the fast-growing cartel has
successfully set up shop in small-town America, including cities across
Kentucky. The investigation found the cartel operating in at least 35 states
and the territory of Puerto Rico.
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